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Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Nine out of ten people like chocolate. The tenth person always lies -- John Q. TulliusBrownie is a chocolate lover’s dream. What is a brownie? How is it different from a chocolate cake? Well my answers are – Brownies have more chocolate in them and much less flour compared to a cake. Brownie should be fudgy and not be spongy .Brownie does not have much leavening agents and is flat. All that you should taste is chocolate chocolate and chocolate.. I have tried many versions of brownie and this one is a perfect one in terms of texture and taste.. This one is fudgy and full of chocolate taste.. Serve this as is or with a vanilla ice cream or have it with milk and call it a kids favorite breakfast. This recipe is adapted from Americas Test Kitchen Low Fat Brownie with a few changes. I have made it eggless using the egg replacer Ener G. You can also use the Flax seed powder to replace the egg. I have also substituted curd with sour cream. Take the thick part of the curd for this. IngredientsAll Purpose Flour - 3/4 CupDutch Process Cocoa - 1/3 cupSalt - 1/4 tea spoonBaking Powder - 1/2 tea spoonSugar - 1 CupSemi Sweet Chocolate Chips - 2 ounces or 60 gramsGhee / Clarified Butter - 2 table spoonsEgg Replacer - 3 tea spoonsWarm Water - 4 table spoonsVanilla Essence - 2 tea spoonsChocolate Syrup - 1 table spoonCurd - 2 table spoons MethodSieve together all purpose flour, Dutch process cocoa, salt and baking powder and mix it well and set asidePreheat the oven to 180 degrees C.Make 2 8 inch by 12 inch pieces of the aluminum foil and set it inside the brownie pan such that there is sling on all the four sidesLightly grease the foiled pan with vegetable oil spray and set aside.Melt the chocolate and ghee using double boiler method. Once melted set aside to cool.For the egg replacer, mix with warm water and set asideAdd curd, vanilla essence, sugar and egg replacer to the melted chocolate and mix all wellNow dump the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold gently until no lumpsAdd the chocolate syrup and mix well. You will see a lot of gloss to the batter now.Pour the batter to the prepared pan and tap a few times on the counter to remove the air bubblesBake it in the preheated oven for 22 - 28 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out with just a little crumbs attached. It took 25 minutes for me.Remove from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan only. If let cooled outside the pan, it can become dryAfter an hour, remove the brownie from the pan with the help of the slingCut into 2 inch squares and now the brownie is ready to relish!!!!For Vegan Version - Please use oil in place of ghee and also vegan sour supreme in place of sour cream or curd. Sorry for not mentioning this before. I am updating this based on a comment received.

Pesarettu or Moong dal dosa is a tangy and interesting taste dosa that tastes best when served hot with tomato chutney. It makes for a nice evening tiffin. This recipe will make 10 around dosas. I got this recipe from my mom and I love when she makes it. It is very colorful, filling and healthy food.. This dish is from the Andhra State and can also be made with whole green gram (whole moong dal).IngredientsPaasi Parupu / Moong Dal – 2 CupsRice – 1 HandGreen Chili – 3Asafetida / Hing – A PinchSalt – to tasteGinger – ½ tea spoonCumin Seeds – ½ tea spoonOilCoriander Leaves – ½ cupCurry Leaves - 10Method

Soak the Paasi Parupu and rice for 2 hoursGrind the Paasi Parupu and rice after soaking with the green chiliOnce well grinded, add asafetida, curry leaves, salt and cumin seedsBring the batter to a nice dosa batter consistency and keep asideHeat the tawa and add ¼ spoon oil and spread the batter like making dosai.Turn the other side after few minutes.Flip both sides and remove from heat once done.Serve Hot with tomato chutney!!

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Sundal is a very popular evening snack which is quick, easy, healthy, filling – too many good things together. It can be prepared in less than 30 minutes from start to finish. This is also a festive snack prepared during Navarathri. Since I am using garbanzo beans can, it is easier and less time consuming. If using the regular garbanzo beans, then soak overnight and pressure cook for at least 5 whistles before method 2. IngredientsGarbanzo Beans – 1 CanSalt – ½ tea spoonCoconut Grated – 2 table spoonCurry Leaves – 5 choppedOil – ½ tea spoonMustard Seeds – ½ tea spoonRed Chili – 2 or 3Cumin Seeds – ¼ tea spoonAsafetida – A pinchGreen Chili - 2

MethodOpen the garbanzo beans can and drain the water and clean the beans once with running water to remove the stickiness.Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seedsOnce the mustard seeds start to crackle, add cumin seeds, red chili, curry leaves and green chili.After 15 seconds, add the garbanzo beans, asafetida and mix wellOnce mixed well, add coconut and remove from heatTransfer to the serving bowl and now the sundal is ready to be served.

Points to note - Information on garbanzo beans (from wikipedia) – Its seeds are high in protein and one of the earliest cultivated vegetables, 7500 year old remains have been found in the middle east. They are a helpful source of zinc, folate, protein and rich in dietary fiber making them a very healthy carbohydrate

Monday, July 9, 2012

Thai Red Curry – Tofu is a vegetarian Thai dish that tastes best when served with rice hot. The spicy and hot taste can be adjusted according to taste. Lot of red chili paste might have shrimp paste making it unsuitable for vegetarians. Please look for the ingredients to make sure it is a vegetarian version. If you cannot find one, then make a paste of garlic, red chili, shallots, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, lemon zest or lemongrass and peppercorns. I was able to get the red curry paste in the vegetarian version and used it. Next time will make the red curry paste at home….IngredientsRed chili – 15Thai Red Chili Paste (vegetarian version) – 1 ½ table spoon Coconut milk – 1 can (13.5 oz)Oil – 1 table spoonCarrot – 1 cupPeas – ½ cupBeans – ½ cupBasil – 1 table spoonTofu (Extra Firm) – 2 cupsSalt – 1 ½ tea spoonOnions – 1 cup (cut thinly)Soy sauce – 1 table spoonJaggery – 1 table spoonMethodDeseed the red chili and keep asideBoil 1 table spoon water and add the red chiliAllow it cool and grind it to a pasteCut the vegetables into cubes and boil them separatelyHeat oil in a pan and add the red chili paste and grinded red chiliOnce it is well sautéed, add the coconut milk and mix well to ensure there are no lumpsAdd the soy sauce, jaggery and saltAllow this to cook on medium flame until it boilsAdd the vegetables, peas and tofu at this pointCook for 5 – 7 minutesAdd basil and remove from heatCook rice in sufficient water until done and set aside.
Serve Thai Red Curry hot with rice